The Things He Never Told You
by AFincorporated
Summary: After the defeat of Gaea, the campers think Leo's dead. While they're clearing Leo's stuff out of his cabin, Hephaestus appears and offers a once-in-a-lifetime deal. He's going to let them watch important parts of Leo's life, because he thinks there are things they need to know. Wanting to know more about Leo (and not really given a choice), his friends agree. What could go wrong?
1. Fire, Hera, and mechanics

**AN: I don't own PJO/HoO, though it's my fondest dream… *swoons*. This is an F story, not A (F and A share this account, so I always specify). Please leave a review or follow/favorite.**

They couldn't believe it. Leo Valdez was dead and gone, killed in the explosion that had destroyed Gaea. They had burned his burial shroud and made Nyssa new head counselor, filling in the gaps where Leo had once been.

Of course, his friends still hoped, deep down, that the son of Hephaestus had somehow survived. But when they had asked again, Nico just shook his head.

It was the moment everyone had dreaded-clearing Leo's things out of his room underneath the Hephaestus cabin. It felt like admitting that he wasn't coming back, grinning and laughing and telling them some far-fetched story about how he had survived.

Nyssa lead the seven into the Hephaestus cabin, biting her lip. Harley waited by Leo's bed, looking like he was trying not to cry. His siblings missed Leo, too.

"His room below has his stuff." Nyssa said weakly. The new head counselor of the Hephaestus cabin had asked his friends to go through Leo's things for her-she thought they should be the ones to do it. Nyssa pressed a button on the headboard and the bed sank into the floor. "C'mon, Harley. Let's go back to the forges."

Harley nodded, sniffling, and they left the seven on their own.

Nobody wanted to say anything, so they climbed down in silence.

Leo's room was mostly as they had expected-cluttered and messy, just the way their ADHD friend had left it. There were blueprints on the walls, tools and bits of metal on every surface, and odd items on the shelves.

The seven nearly broke down in tears when they saw the collage of photos on one wall-it was Leo with the seven, and a lot of people they didn't know.

"Who are all of these people?" Annabeth asked, motioning to a photo in the very middle. It showed a younger Leo grinning and waving at the camera, surrounded by a bunch of grinning kids. They were all rugged, dirty, and tattered, and had the wild look of animals. But Leo seemed perfectly at home. "Leo never mentioned them, did he?"  
"No, he didn't." Piper said. "I don't recognize most of these people, actually."

"Leo never really talked about his past," Percy said sadly. "I guess there was a lot we didn't know."

"Yes, there is." A gravelly voice came from behind them. They all jumped and spun around, some of them drawing weapons. It was a large lumpy man wearing grease-stained overalls and muddy workboots. He fidgeted uncomfortably. He inclined his head to Percy and Annabeth, like they knew him. "Hello, again."

"Lord Hephaestus." Annabeth said politely. Percy nodded, looking a little annoyed to see the god. But to everyone's surprise, Jason snarled at the god, his grip tightening on his sword.

"Oh, so _now_ you're here! About time! Where were you when Leo needed you, huh?" Piper grabbed his arm and he calmed down a bit, but her eyes flashed. She was daring Hephaestus to say the wrong thing, like; _make nice or I'll sic my boyfriend on you._

"I know I'm here too late." Hephaestus sighed, looking miserable. It was hard to stay mad at the big awkward guy-he sounded honestly sorry. "But I'm going to help you not be."

Before anyone could say anything, Hephaestus waved his hand and a movie screen appeared, hovering midair behind him. He stepped out of the way, and with another wave of his hand plush armchairs appeared behind the demigods. "Sit down." He said uncomfortably. They did, a little uneasy.

"I keep an eye on all my children." Hephaestus explained. "Make sure they're safe. Get them to camp, claim them as soon as I can, that type of thing. I don't like them getting hurt."

Percy nodded. Even before he made the gods swear to claim their kids, Hephaestus had always been good about it. His kids were only ever unclaimed for a couple of days.

"I watched Leo especially. He is… special, from a young age. I don't think you all know him quite as well as you think you do, and I want to help."

Annabeth's eyes narrowed. "You're talking about him in the present tense."

"Oh, um, I am?" Hephaestus said, looking guilty. "Sorry. I'm not really used to…" He motioned all around him, taking in the demigods and his son's room. But the daughter of Athena wasn't sure that was it. "Anyway, I put together a track of some of the important things in Leo's life. It's all the things you don't know."

Before any of the demigods could protest that _of course we know Leo!_ he disappeared. The movie screen flickered to life, and a fuzzy image appeared on it.

"Where's this?" Frank asked.

 _The image focused on screen. It showed a small cozy kitchen-it didn't look super nice, but it was clean and neat, and obviously owned by someone kind. Standing in the kitchen was a small boy, around six or seven. He was latino, and had dark curly eyes and hair. He was barefoot and wore dirty overalls._

 _Words appeared on the bottom of the screen in white:_ _Houstan, Texas_. _Below that, and smaller, was_ _Valdez Family Apartment_ _. On the right-hand corner of the screen was the words;_ _Leo's Age: six_ _._

"That's little Leo?" Hazel asked, breaking into a smile. Her friends couldn't help smiling as well-little Leo was… well, little Leo. In a less sad situation, Percy and Jason might've taken photos to tease the elf with later.

Then they remembered that he was dead.

"He looked exactly like an elf when he was little!" Piper laughed.

 _Little Leo was turning the knobs on the stove. A blue flame flickered to life under the burners, and Leo stared at it, transfixed._

 _Suddenly, a woman came into the kitchen, and Leo switched the stove off before she could see what he'd been doing._

 _The woman was tall and willowy, but still looked strong. She was latina and had long dark hair and big kind brown eyes. She wore baggy jeans with patches on the knees, dirty sneakers, a flowy white t-shirt, and a clean brand-new looking army jacket. She was a pretty woman, but there were bags under her eyes and her shoulders were tensed. Still, she broke into a smile when she saw Leo._

"Is that Leo's mom?" Jason asked.

"I think so," Frank said, remembering when Leo had told him about his mom. He ached a little to see the woman that had meant so much to Leo.

" _Leo, there you are!" The woman said. As she spoke, small words in white popped up over her head;_ _Esperanza Valdez_ _. The name flashed away again after a moment._

"Her name?" Annabeth guessed, then added, "Yeah." To answer her own question.

 _Esperanza scooped Leo up and tickled his stomach, making him giggle. "I have to go to the store, mijo. Will you be OK here for a few minutes without me?"_

 _Leo nodded vigorously. "I'll be good, mama."_

" _Okay. Thanks for being such an angel, mijo." Esperanza set Leo down again, and kissed the top of his head. Then the left the kitchen again, calling, "See you soon!"_

"I'm not so sure it's a good idea for her to leave Leo alone when he's so young," Jason said nervously. He was worried for his friend. "Leo could get into lots of trouble in a few minutes.

 _As soon as his mother was out of the room, Leo hurried back to the stove. He flicked the stove on expertly and turned the dials all the way up, like had had done it many times before. He glanced over his shoulder at the door, then reached up slowly and stuck his tiny fingers into the blue flame._

"Yeah, definitely not a good idea." Piper agreed, watching her friend. "If that were any kid but Leo…."

"Those fingers would be toast." Percy agreed.

 _Leo stared into the flame, waving his hand back and forth. The fire didn't seem to bother him at all. He had been standing like that just long enough for the demigods watching to get bored, when Esperanza came back in carrying grocery bags, and screamed._

 _She dropped the groceries and they spilled across the floor as she raced to Leo and yanked him away from the stove. She cradled Leo with one arm and reached up to quickly turn off the stove again._

" _Leo! What were you doing!"_

" _It's okay, mama." Leo assured his mom, trying to squirm free of her protective grasp. "The fire doesn't hurt me. See?" He held up his hands, wiggling his totally unharmed fingers._

"I feel bad for Leo's mom," Frank laughed. "It must have been nuts to raise him."

 _Esperanza stared at Leo's hand in amazement, then blinked and shook her head. "Oh, mijo. Promise me you won't play with the stove again."_

" _Why?"_

" _I don't want you to get hurt. It didn't burn you this time, but it might next time. It's not safe, okay? Promise no playing with the stove?" Leo hesitated, but nodded._

" _Okay, mama. I won't play with the stove."_

 _Esperanza nodded in relief. "Thank you, mijo. Now c'mon, let's see if we can save any of these groceries…."_

The screen went blank. "That jacket," Annabeth said, and her friends could see the gears turning in her head. "The jacket Esperanza was wearing, wasn't that the jacket that Leo used to-"

"Leo's army jacket!" Piper explained. "You're right, Annabeth! It must have been his mom's."

 _The screen turned back on, and the demigods quieted again._

 _ **(insert memories of Hera babysitting Leo when he was little here)**_

The screen turned off again. "Hera babysat him? And I thought I had it bad." Hazel said, looking surprised. "He never told me any of that."

"He didn't tell any of us. I mean, he mentioned Hera used to babysit, but we never knew any details." Jason said, motioning to himself and Piper.

Before they could talk any more, the screen turned back on again. "I guess Hephaestus has a lot of memories lined up for us," Piper mumbled, wondering what this one would be.

 _Leo stood by a car in the middle of an mechanic shop. He stared at it, holding a wrench in one hand and a screwdriver in the other. The words on the bottom of the screen changed to:_ _Houston, Texas_ _,_ _Nuts 'n Bolts Mechanics_ _, and_ _Leo's age: seven_. _Leo wore dirty and baggy jeans and a way too-big white t-shirt._

 _Standing six feet behind Leo was his mom, dressed in overalls. There were a couple of other mechanics standing around her, and all of them stared at Leo like he was about to to a flip. All except Esperanza-her eyes were full of pride._

"Why aren't names showing up for all of those guys?" Percy asked.

"The name's are probably only for important people in Leo's life. Those men are just watching." Annabeth explained.

"What's Leo doing?" Frank asked.

 _On screen, Leo suddenly darted forward. He stood in front of the car's exposed engine, which was what Leo had been staring at. His hands flew over the metal, moving wire and adjusting parts. He yanked with the wrench and twisted with the screwdriver. It took him a few minutes, but finally he stepped back proudly and glanced back at his mom and the other mechanics._

" _I fixed it!" He shouted happily._

"He _fixed_ it?" Annabeth spluttered, shock. "He's seven! That's… incredible. I mean, I knew he was good, but that's crazy!"

Piper and Jason, Leo's best friends, beamed proudly. "Yeah. He was always great with machines." Jason said, nodding a little sadly.

 _The mechanics burst into chatter. Esperanza swept up her son and lifted him onto her shoulders. Even at age seven, he was still small enough for her to carry. The mechanics flocked around the engine, marvelling at Leo's work._

" _All of us couldn't do that in three days!" One man laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Leo, that was amazing."_

" _Look, it's perfect!"_

" _There's nothing wrong with it now. I don't know how he did it, but he did!" The other men said, shaking their heads and examining the engine. Esperanza beamed, and Leo just giggled a little._

" _You are so talented, mijo." Esperanza whispered, so that only Leo could hear. "You're going to do great things one day, I know it. I'm so proud." Leo smiled and buried his face in her dark hair._

Leo's friends were in awe. That was crazy. Frank and Percy exchanged a saddened look, though-Esperanza reminded them of their own mom's.

Just then, Nyssa's voice came from above. "Dinnertime, guys! Are you done?"

They quickly explained Hephaestus showing the memories, and the screen changed to show the words; _I will show more after dinner, and tomorrow. Please tell Nyssa and Harley that they are welcome to watch with you._ Nyssa immediately agreed to watch, and Harley agreed at dinner.

At the "seven table", a special table for the seven plus Nico and Reyna when she visited, (though not Nico's boyfriend Will, much to the couple's annoyance), the seven talked about Leo.

"It's funny some of the stuff he didn't tell us." Hazel said. She picked at her food. "I just hope there isn't anything too bad that Leo was hiding."

"I'm sure it will be fine, Hazel." Frank said confidently. But he wasn't so sure either.

 **AN: so that was chapter one! Thanks for reading! I have seen other stories like this, and I'm not sure if their authors will be mad that I used the same idea, but if you wrote a story like this and you want me to take mine down, PM me. Please leave a review or favorite/follow.**


	2. Esperanza, Rosa, and bad jokes

**AN: thanks for reading this. I don't own PJO/HoO. Please leave a review or follow/favorite if you like the story. Questions or constructive criticism are okay, and if you have an idea for a memory feel free to send it, though I might not use it.**

As soon as dinner was over, the seven found Nyssa and Harley and went back to Leo's room underneath the Hephaestus cabin. They could hardly wait to see more of Leo's life, even if that sounded… well, kind of weird.

They settled back down (Hazel and Harley sat on the floor with Nyssa in Hazel's seat, because there wasn't enough chairs) and waited for the records of Leo's life to start again.

Sure enough, the movie screen (which was still magically hanging in midair where they had left it) flickered to life when they were ready.

 _On screen, a younger Leo then they had seen before hopped from one junked car to the next. He was in the middle of a scrap yard, rusty metal, old tires, abandoned dishwashers and fridges, and piled-up metal beams. Leo stopped by an old abandoned car. Below Leo appeared the words,_ _Houston, Texas_ _,_ _Local Scrap Yard_ _, and_ _Leo's age: five_ _._

 _Leo, dressed in grease-stained overalls with patches on the knees and rainboots with little froggy's on them, leaned forward. He dug his fingernails underneath the trunk of the car, trying to pry it up, but couldn't manage it. He leaned his full weight into it, but the tiny boy wasn't strong enough._

"Why is Leo all alone in a scrap yard?" Piper asked. "Isn't that kind of dangerous?"  
"No!" Harley protested. The son of Hephaestus couldn't be older then ten, and still had a high sweet voice. "Machine's aren't scary, they're daddy's!" Nyssa just smiled, exchanging a, _isn't he cute?_ look.

" _Leo, where are you?" Esperanza's voice came from somewhere. Leo looked up, grinning._

" _Over here, mama!"_

 _Esperanza came around a pile of scrap metal, but she was dressed differently from the other times they had seen her. She wore light makeup and her dark brown hair was in a braid. She wore a black skirt (secondhand but still clean and well taken-care of), a white button-up blouse, and black flats. She looked out of place in the neat clothes, and uncomfortable. But she still wore the army jacket that would one day be Leo's._

 _It was immediately obvious that she was dressed up for the benefit of the woman walking towards Leo with her. The woman looked like Esperanza, but instead of the warm friendly prettiness Leo's mother possessed, this woman had sharp frightening beauty. She had high cheekbones, slightly sunken cheeks, curly black hair in a loose bun, a bit too much makeup, dark eyes, and a red-and-white suit and skirt._

 _A name appeared over the second woman's head:_ _Rosa Saracco: aka Aunt Rosa_ _._

Hazel gasped. "Aunt Rosa! Leo's Aunt Rosa!"

"How do you know her, Hazel?" Jason asked.

Hazel quickly explained how she and Leo met Nemesis together, and how Nemesis took the face of someone you wanted to get revenge on. Leo had seen his Aunt Rosa's face. "Whatever she did, Leo must really not like his aunt for Nemesis to take her face." Hazel finished.

 _On screen, Esperanza and Rosa had reached Leo, and Esperanza lifted Leo onto the hood of the car, big dark eyes scanning the engine. Rosa, meanwhile, sniffed haughtily and glanced at Leo like he was mud on her shoes._

"I already don't like her." Piper muttered. Everyone agreed.

" _Don't waste time with that stupid car, Espie."_ _Rosa said. Esperanza gritted her teeth at the nickname, but said nothing about it. "It's foolish to care so much about engines. Mechanics aren't that important; it's too bad you aren't as successful as me. I mean,_ I _have a husband. And a good son." Rosa said all this casually, like she wasn't insulting her sister and nephew._

"Okay, I officially hate her." Percy announced. Nyssa and Harley looked furious.

"Mechanics aren't that important! She's nuts!" Nyssa spluttered.

"She's so mean! She's lying!" Harley said, pouting. "Leo says mean people are only mean because they feel bad." He and everyone else winced. "Said."

The older demigods couldn't help but be proud of Leo-it sounded like he'd really been a good older brother to Harley. It was terrible that Leo had been separated from his family so soon after finding them.

" _Rosa, I'm sorry you don't approve of what I do, but the insult to Leo is unnecessary." Esperanza said, straightening her spine to look her sister in the eye. Her own eyes flashed with anger and her fists were clenched, but she held her head high and spoke calmly._

All the demigods were impressed that Esperanza wasn't yelling at Rosa. Most of them felt like yelling at the movie screen, even if Rosa wasn't really there.

" _He's a bastard."_

" _Excuse me, but you have no right to-"_

" _Well he is! His father is a deadbeat and his mother's profession is silly! He won't amount to anything! Just like you! Your machines are stupid, and if you had listened to me-"_

"I feel terrible for Leo-his aunt is evil." Frank scowled.

 _Rosa stormed, poking her sister in the middle of her chest from anger._

 _Esperanza lost it. She looked like she wanted to smack Rosa, but instead said angrily, "Rosa, please leave. You are wrong and I don't have to listen to your insults anymore." Esperanza pointed the way they'd come. "Go!"_

 _Rosa spun around on her heel and haughtily stormed towards the entrance to the scrap yard. She shouted over her shoulder, "Fine! But if you'd just listened to me in the first place, you would've given that child away when you had him and you'd be much better off!"_

"How can they say that!" Piper spluttered.

"Rosa is evil!" Jason scowled.

"I'm gonna find her and kick her butt." Nyssa grumbled.

 _Esperanza glared after her sister as she left. Leo, sitting on top of the car, looked confused and worried. "Mama, is Auntie Rosa right? Are our machines stupid?" He looked at his mom with big confused eyes._

" _No, mijo! Aunt Rosa is just wrong. Our machines can do anything, and if you can build them, then nobody could rightly say you're bad." Esperanza said, shaking her head and ruffling Leo's hair. "Now let's have a look at this engine you found, huh?" Leo nodded excitedly._

 _Esperanza looked around at the engine, poking at the metal pieces, twisting a few bolts, attaching wires to different places, and moving things around. "This engine is pretty far gone, mijo." Esperanza said, looking up at her son, who had been waiting quietly while she assessed the damage._

" _So we can't fix it?" Leo spluttered, looking upset. His face crumpled._

" _I never said that, Leo!" Esperanza laughed. "Most problems look worse then they are. Nothing is unfixable."_

"So that's where Leo got that." Nyssa said suddenly. At the other's confused looks (minus Harley, who knew what his sister was talking about), she explained. "He always says that when something is broken. I had wondered where he heard it. I guess it was his mom."

" _I know, mama." Leo said, puffing out his chest. "We can fix it!"_

"He sounds like Fixit Felix, from that movie," Percy snickered, but Annabeth whacked him on the shoulder and he shut up.

" _You bet we can, mijo!" Esperanza smiled. "Come on, let's go back to the shop and get our tools. We'll get to work."_

" _What about Aunt Rosa?" Leo asked with a worried glance towards where his aunt had gone._

" _Forget her. She wouldn't understand our machines-I think she's just jealous she's doesn't know how to use them like us. But we have to be as nice as we can be-it's always good to make someone smile, mijo."_

"Something gives me the feeling Leo filed that knowledge away." Jason said with a fake smile.

 _Leo nodded and giggled, and his mother gave him a piggyback ride out of the scrap yard._

"Leo's mom was crazy nice." Annabeth said. "I probably would've hit Rosa if I was Esperanza in that situation."

"Yeah, definitely. She just doesn't appreciate us mechanics." Nyssa agreed.

The next scene from Leo's life came on the screen.

 _Esperanza Valdez sat at the kitchen table. There were crumpled papers scattered around her feet, and she propped her head up on one fist as she drew out blueprints for a new machine. There were dark bags under her eyes, but she still wore the army jacket._

 _Underneath image, it read;_ _Houston, Texas_ _,_ _Valdez Family Apartment_ _, and_ _Leo's age: seven_ _. On screen, Esperanza glanced at her watch. It read ten o'clock. "I should've put Leo to bed two hours ago!" She gasped, jumping up so hard she banged her knee on the kitchen table._

All the demigods winced.

 _She stumbled out of the kitchen and around a corner, through another door, and into a small bedroom. Leo was sitting on his bed, scribbling something down on a pad of paper. He wore a red onesie with little firetrucks and police cars on it._

A couple of people grinned at the tiny son of Hephaestus. Even Nyssa grinned.

" _I'm sorry I'm so late, mijo." Esperanza said, rubbing her forehead. "I was so caught up with my new designs, I just forgot…. mijo, what are you working on?"_

" _Nothing!" Leo giggled. He leapt off the bed and ran out of the bed, down the hall and into the kitchen. Esperanza laughed despite her tiredness and ran after him. He scrambled into a kitchen chair next to where his mother was working and banged on the table. "Okay, sit down sit down!"_

 _Esperanza, still looking half-amused half-confused, sat down._

" _Why did the cookie go to the doctor?" Leo asked, giggling._

All the demigods rolled their eyes. "Oh no, please don't answer him, Esperanza." Frank groaned.

"She can't hear you, Zhang." Percy pointed out, grinning. Frank shrugged, a little pink.

" _I don't know, why?" Esperanza asked, splitting into a grin._

" _Because he was feeling crummy!" Leo burst into hysterical laughter like he's just told the funniest joke ever._

Harley did to. He was almost rolling on the ground. His sister gave him a concerned look, not sure if he was dying or just thought it was funny.

 _His mom grinned and shook her head, brushing a stray curl out of Leo's eyes. "Who's the king of the classroom?" This time he didn't even wait for an answer. "The ruler!" He cracked up again._

"Leo's jokes were nutty even when he was a kid," Nyssa smiled. "It's almost funny because it's terrible." Harley, who couldn't breath for laughing, clearly just thought it was hilarious.

 _Esperanza looked lovingly at Leo. She stood up. "Come on mijo, it's time for bed._ Past _time for bed, actually."_

" _But you need moral sup-sup-support," Leo said, yawning. "Please, can I stay up and help, I'll be quiet!" He pleaded with big brown eyes. Esperanza thought about it, then finally nodded. "Yes!"_

" _Go get your blankets, we can work in the living room."_

 _The camera switched to the living room. Esperanza and Leo sat on an old worn loveseat. Esperanza drew her designs and blueprints on the coffee table, and Leo curled up in his blankets next to her. He sleepily mumbled corny jokes until his eyes closed and he fell asleep._

 _Esperanza smiled at her sleeping son. "Oh, Leo." She said. "I know you'll do great things. You be my amazing little Repair Boy, okay?"_

Piper nearly fell out of her seat. "Oh my gods! She gave him the same nickname I did! That's so crazy!" Her friends looked just as shocked.

"Great minds think alike?" Jason asked.

"Or maybe Repair Boy just fits him so well you both thought of it." Annabeth said, smiling.

 _On screen, Leo mumbled something in his sleep. A smiling Esperanza shook her head and turned back to her blueprints._

 _A message appeared on the screen:_ _It's past your curfew. You have to go back to your cabins to avoid the harpies_ _._

The demigods got up and stretched, Harley yawning heavily (and sometimes hiccuping from laughing too hard). They left Leo's room, and the seven had to run for their lives to get back to their cabins safely.

 **AN: thanks for reading! Thanks to the people who have favorited/followed, you rule! If you haven't already, leave a review or favorite/follow the story. Later taters**


	3. Tommy, Lilian, and running

**AN: I don't own PJO or HoO. Please leave a review or favorite/follow this story if you like it.**

The next morning, the demigods met again underneath the Hephaestus cabin to watch more parts of Leo's life.

Although Leo's friends had been a little worried that they would see Leo's deepest darkest secrets, so far Leo's life seemed happy and calm. His mother was loving, and they were happy working as mechanics in Houston.

But if things stayed happy, how did Leo end up in a school for delinquents in Arizona? And how did his mom die? Although only Jason, Piper, and Frank knew that Leo's mother had been killed in a fire.

When everyone was settled, with Hazel and Harley volunteering to sit on the floor again, the screen turned back on.

 _ **Insert memory of Leo's mom dying**_

"Oh my gods," Hazel whispered.

"Poor Leo… I didn't know any of that." Percy said, looking extremely guilty.

"Why didn't he tell us this stuff?" Annabeth demanded. Jason, Piper, and Frank glanced at each other, feeling a little bad that they hadn't told the story to their friends sooner. But to be fair, it wasn't their story to tell.

"Actually, Leo told us." Piper said guiltily. "Jason, Frank, and I knew. I'm sorry, we probably should have told you-"

"No, it's fine," Annabeth said, holding up a hand to stop Piper's apology. "If Leo wanted the rest of us to know, Leo would have told us." She turned to the screen. "This whole thing feels like a huge invasion of privacy, to me."

"It's for the best." Percy assured her, but Annabeth didn't look sure.

The screen turned back on.

 _This time the screen read;_ _Houston, Texas_ _,_ _Social services_ _,_ _Leo's age: eight_ _._

"This must be right after his mom died." Annabeth speculated.

 _Leo sat in a waiting room in what looked like a hospital. A large man in a suit came in, talking to Leo's aunt Rosa. Leo looked totally dejected-he had bags under his eyes, he sat slumped staring at the floor, and his clothes were clearly second-hand and too big. And he wore the army jacket, so it must be after his mom died._

 _A name appeared over the large man's head:_ _Tommy Smith_ _._

 _Tommy was talking to Rosa angrily, but quiet enough that Leo couldn't hear what was going on. "Ma'am, he needs a home, and he's just lost his mother. You are his only family left, how can you just-"_

" _No!" Rosa said, and she didn't bother being quiet. Leo's head shot up to stare at his aunt Rosa with big hurt eyes. "I will not take him in! He is a diablo. If it weren't for him, my sister would still be alive. I don't care what happens to him!"_

Everyone gritted their teeth. "If I ever find her, I'm sticking my knife up her-" Piper growled. Hazel went pink and fanned herself with one hand. "She's the reason Leo thought it was his fault!"

 _In the waiting room, Leo shrunk into his seat, eyes brimming with tears. "Do you hear me, diablo child?" Rosa shouted, and she stormed towards Leo. "This is all your fault! You killed my sister! You are worthless and will amount to nothing!"_

 _Leo started crying, and Tommy angrily called for security. Two men in security guard uniforms came in and pulled Rosa out, with her still shouting at Leo in spanish._

 _Tommy glared after Rosa, then sat down next to Leo. "You shouldn't listen to your aunt. This wasn't your fault." Tommy offered a kind smile._

"Him I like." Hazel said, nodding approvingly. "Who is he, anyway?"  
"Leo's social worker." Jason said. "Leo mentioned him once."

" _She's right." Leo mumbled._

" _No she isn't. Don't worry, you're not going to stay with Rosa. I'm going to find a new home for you, where you'll be safe."_

" _But I want to live with my mama!" Leo said, bursting into tears. "Quiero que mi mama de vuelta!"_

Jason and Piper exchanged a glance. Leo was like their little brother, and they wished they could jump into the screen and comfort him. Nobody should have to go through this, but Leo had. And even when he was fifteen at camp half blood, he had carried his burden alone.

 _Tommy looked pained. "I'm sorry, Leo. She's not coming back. But we can find a new place where you can be just as happy, okay?"_

" _I don't think you can do that." Leo said, shaking his head. "I was happy with my mom."_

The scene ended. Hazel sniffed. "I wish we had appreciated Leo more. We always took him for granted…."

"I never laughed at his jokes." Nyssa said miserably.

"We can't think about what we did wrong." Percy said, calming everyone down. "Watching Leo's memories is our chance to learn more about him, so that we can remember him for who he was and everything he did. We can't play the blame game with ourselves-we can't go back, only forward." Nobody argued. Annabeth let a small smile play on her lips at her boyfriend's speech.

The screen turned back on.

 _Leo sat in the corner of a playground. He wore the army jacket and dirty clothes that were too big for him. He watched the other kids play soccer and run around nervously, like he was afraid of being attacked._

 _One boy spotted him and elbowed his friends. This boy didn't look nice-he had a face that looked like he spent his spare time running into walls, and beady big eyes. A name appeared over his head;_ _Matt Hurl_ _._

"That's a nasty name." Harley said, wrinkling up his nose.

 _On the bottom of the screen it read;_ _San Antonio, Texas_ _,_ _Roosevelt Elementary School_ _, and;_ _Leo's age: nine_ _._

 _Matt Hurl and his friends (whose names hadn't appeared) walked towards Leo, and they didn't look like they were friendly. They were at least three years older then Leo, and when Leo spotted them walking towards them he scrambled to his feet, like he was ready for a fight._

"That kid doesn't look like Leo," Piper commented, staring at her younger friend. "He's to…"

"We know what you mean. Just looks kind of defeated." Jason agreed. It was true. The Leo on the screen looked like life had beaten him down pretty hard, and he didn't expect it to get better.

" _What do you want, Matt?" Leo demanded, but he didn't look as tough as he probably hoped._

 _Matt sneered. "When did you get a spine, Valdez? I thought you just hid in the corner sniveling over mommy. If you loved her so much, why'd you kill her? Stupid."_

" _I didn't kill my mom!" Leo shouted, and even though the army jacket fell over his hands they must be clenched into fists. "Just leave me alone, Matt."_

" _I don't think so. You didn't pay us our weekly protection fee, Valdez. Hand it over." Matt held out a hand. Leo glanced at the hand and started patting down his pockets, making a show of checking in his lunch bag and going through his pockets. "Hurry up, Leo." Matt snapped._

 _Leo nodded slowly, then let out a gasp of terror and pointed over Matt's left shoulder. "Ohmygod what's that?" He shouted. Matt was stupid enough to look, but his friends weren't. So when Leo bolted to the right, they grabbed his arms before he could get away. "Lemme go!" Some of the kids on the playground had noticed what was going on and started coming over to watch._

"Maybe one of the other kids will help him?" Percy said hopefully.

"I don't think they will, Seaweed brain." Annabeth said softly. She watched the screen sadly, like she knew what was going to happen.

" _If you can't pay, we'll have to punish you so you learn your lesson!" Matt said, breaking into a grin. "Dogs need to be put down sometime, Valdez." His friends snickered. Leo's eyes widened and he tried to break free, but the older boys dragged him to the middle of the pavement where every kid on the playground could watch._

 _The other kids crowded around, some jeering and laughing, some looking like they wanted to help but were too afraid. The two older boy's let go of Leo's arms once he was totally surrounded by a tight ring of kids and couldn't escape._

 _Matt jeered and cracked his knuckles._

"C'mon, Leo, fight back…" Piper whispered, on the edge of her seat.

But they knew Leo wouldn't. He wasn't much of a fighter-this wouldn't end well.

" _Aren't you gonna defend yourself, Valdez?" Matt sneered. Leo just took a step back, looking panicky. Matt punched Leo in the gut before the latino could even try and fight._

Everyone winced. Jason reached for his weapon, like he could slash Matt to bits through the movie projector screen.

 _Leo doubled over, coughing. Some of the kids in the crowd let out a ragged cheer. Leo managed to straighten up, and Matt hit him in the jaw. Leo actually fell over, and didn't get up. He rubbed his jaw and winced, and then his eyes widened. He turned to the side and spat out something white-a tooth._

"That f***er knocked Leo's tooth out!" Nyssa growled, ignoring Hazel's indignant gasp. "I swear, if I ever run into him…."

 _Matt strolled closer, looking like a lion closing in for the kill after a long hunt. When he reached Leo, he drew back his foot and kicked the boy viciously in the side. Leo barely managed to crawl a few more feet away. Matt followed, but before he could attack a girl darted out of the crowd to stand between Leo and his attacker._

"Yes! Whoever that is, I love her!" Piper cheered. Hazel grinned, and Frank actually clapped. "C'mon, hit Matt for Leo!"

" _Leave him alone, Matt! Haven't you done enough?" The girl shouted._

 _She was small and nimble-looking, and had a heart-shaped face. Her bright green eyes flashed angrily underneath sleek black glasses, and she had dark curly hair tied in a ponytail with red ribbon. She wore a white jeans and a light green parka, and her hands were fists._

 _A name appeared over her head;_ _Lilian Moss_ _._

"Go Lilian!" Frank cheered. Nyssa wolf-whistled, and Harley clapped. It was nice for the moment of happiness after the darker memories-someone had stood up for Leo. Piper wanted to go find Lilian Moss and hug her.

" _Butt out, Moss." Matt growled. "This has nothing to do with you."_

" _Actually this is my playground, and that's my friend. So it's got a whole effing lot to do with me, Matt." Lilian pointed at Leo on the ground behind her. "Now back down before I have to hurt you."_

 _Matt laughed, and his friends were almost in hysterics. The kids in the crowd chuckled and elbowed each other, rolling their eyes. Nobody seemed to be taking Lilian seriously. She set her jaw, and said calmly, "Last chance, Matt."_

" _Do your worst, Moss!" Matt scoffed._

 _Before Matt could react, Lilian cracked his jaw with a hard uppercut. She quickly followed to the right, kneed him in the crotch, and brought her elbow down on the back of his head when he doubled over so that he fell on his face on the pavement. Ignoring the shock of the other kids, she turned and hurried to Leo, who was struggling to stand._

" _Are you okay?" She asked, crouching next to him and grabbing his arms to help him up._

" _I'll be okay. I guess it's just good that my best friend is badass, huh?" Leo grinned, showing off the space where his tooth used to be._

" _Oh my god, Leo, your tooth!" Lilian said, staring._

" _Do I look like a pirate?" Leo asked hopefully._

 _Lilian laughed and wrapped one arm around Leo, helping him limp away from Matt and his friends. "Sorry, Valdez. Better luck next time. But I'm sorry I had class during lunch today, I almost didn't make it in time…" Her bright green eyes filled with guilt._

 _Leo pulled away from her grasp to lean against the chain link fence that surrounded the playground. "Hey, it's okay. You saved me again-you've nothing to apologize for, bonita."_

"What does _bonita_ mean in English?" Frank asked.

Annabeth giggled, and it was the first time she had really giggled. "I only took a few semesters of Spanish, but I think _bonita_ means beautiful. Leo's got a crush."

"Really? He's not usually this subtle with his crushes." Jason grinned.

"Didn't he call her his best friend?" Piper asked.

"Leo and Lilian, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love-" Harley sang until Nyssa clamped a hand over his mouth so they could hear what was happening on screen.

 _Leo smiled bravely at Lilian, who smiled back. Then frowned. "One of these days, you'll tell me what that nickname means in english."_

" _Sorry, bonita, that's my little secret." Leo tapped the side of his nose with a grin. That was more like the Leo they knew. Lilian grinned but rolled her eyes and started helping Leo toward the school as the bell rang, signaling the end of recess._

That day from Leo's life ended again. "I wonder what happened to Lilian…?" Piper wondered. "I think someone should tell her… k'now, about him."

That soured the mood. Everyone knew what she was talking about-Lilian probably didn't know that Leo was dead. There was a heavy silence, thankfully broken by the next clip starting.

 _San Antonio, Texas_ _,_ _Roosevelt Elementary School_ _, and_ _Leo's age: nine_ _. A version of Leo who could only be a few months older stood waiting in the hallway of the school, watching other kids leave through the double doors, laughing and shouting._

 _He stood waiting until there were no other kids in the hallway, and the demigods began to wonder what he was waiting for. Finally, a door opposite him burst open. The door, marked_ _ **Principal's Office**_ _banged shut behind Lilian, who was the one to come out._

" _About time!" Leo rolled his eyes. "What did you do this time?"  
_ " _How could you_ possibly _suspect me, Valdez?" Lilian grinned, looping her arm through his. "I would_ never… _call my math teacher an old sot and storm out of the class."_

"I like Lilian." Nyssa said confidently. "Tough as nails."

 _Lilian led Leo to a locker, and she spun a combination in, yanking it open. Leo laughed. "That's crazier then something I would do, bonita. But there's something I need to talk to you about."_

"That doesn't sound good." Hazel mumbled.

" _What?" Lilian asked, stuffing books from her locker into a backpack._

" _I'm leaving. I'm running away from my foster home and it's not that I don't care about you but I just have to go and I'm really sorry and-" Lilian pressed a hand over Leo's mouth._

"Oh Leo, how can you leave? Lilian is perfect for you!" Piper groaned, and everyone except Jason stared at her. She went red. "Nevermind."

" _You're running away. Seriously." Leo nodded, Lilian's hand still over his mouth. "Okay." Lilian slowly took her hand away. She turned to her locker and silently tucked a few more books into her backpack._

" _You aren't mad?" Leo asked nervously. Lilian took a deep breath, zipped up her backpack, then turned and punched Leo squarely in the nose._

Everyone winced. Percy actually touched his own nose in sympathy.

 _Leo fell on his butt, clutching his nose. "Hey! Overreaction alert!"_

" _How can you just leave! I'll never see you again and you're my best friend and how can you do this!" Lilian practically screamed._

" _Of course you'll see me again, bonita!" Leo laughed and shook his head like Lilian was being ridiculous. "I'll come back and visit. Not so often, but I-I don't want to be without you." He went red and sat there on the floor, both hands on his nose._

 _Lilian stared at him like he was talking in a foreign language. "Really?" Leo nodded. Lilian stepped forward and grabbed Leo's hand, pulling him up. Thankfully, Leo's nose wasn't bleeding, just bruised._

 _Lilian hugged Leo, wrapping her arms around him and pressing the side of her face into his shirt. "You're the best friend ever, you know? And sorry about the nose."_

" _I do know," Leo said jokingly, but he looked like he was about to pass out. He awkwardly hugged Lilian back. "And apology accepted. Friends?"  
_ " _Friends."_

"That one had a happy ending." Hazel commented, smiling.

"I'm glad Leo had Lilian in his life." Percy said, nodding with a note of finality. He knew that if they started talking about Lilian, it would go on for a while. Thankfully, the next memory came on almost right away.

 _On the screen, an older Leo was sitting on a fire escape, his legs dangling off the side. The bottom of the screen read;_ _San Antonio, Texas_ _,_ _North Street Apartments_ _, and_ _Leo's age: twelve_ _. Sitting next to Leo was a girl they didn't immediately recognize._

 _She had bright green eyes underneath sleek black glasses. Her dark curls fell over her shoulders, and she was short and slightly curvy though still strong-looking. She wore a light dusting of makeup-just a little eyeshadow and lip gloss. She was strikingly pretty, but still wore sturdy sneakers, skinny jeans, and a gray t-shirt._

"Who is that?" Percy asked, waiting for a name to identify the girl.

"It's Lilian, seaweed brain!" Annabeth laughed, swatting her boyfriend on the arm.

" _Why are you back again, Leo?" She asked, leaning against the railing of the fire escape next to the Valdez. Leo looked battered and wore dirty clothes, his hair was tangled, and there were bags under his eyes. "It's been three months since your last visit. I was beginning to think…" She shook her head._

"Leo still visits her after he ran away?" Piper asked, grinning.

"They need a ship name." Jason mumbled.

"Sorry, what?" Annabeth asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What! My little bro needs a girlfriend. I got Nico and Will together, didn't I?"

"True…."

" _I had to see my best friend, didn't I?" Leo asked, grinning at his friend._

" _You said you were going to New York City. The truant officers would never find you there, you know that."  
_ " _But it's so far away! I wouldn't be able to visit anymore."_

"He's visited for three years! That's a surefire sign they were meant to be." Hazel nodded.

"But what else has he been doing during all that time?" Annabeth asked, frowning. Nobody knew.

" _You can't stay for my sake. I'll get over it if you go… I know you're only here for me. I mean, it's not like you miss me when you're gone." Lilian looked down at her hands. Leo looked shocked._

"I'm sure that's not true." Hazel said, looking worried. "Lilian can't think that!"

" _Bonita, that's not true! I miss you all the time. Why else would I be here? Besides, this time the visit… it's different." Lilian raised an eyebrow at him, telling him to go on. "I want…." Leo took a deep breath. "I want you to come with me."_

"Run away with Leo? Not sure that's a good idea…" Percy looked worried.

" _What?" Lilian looked shocked. She stared at Leo like he'd grown a second head. "I can't run away, Leo, I'm not like you. I'm not strong enough to be on my own."_

" _Are you crazy, bonita? You're the strongest person I know. And we would be together. Please, you don't even like it here."_

 _Lilian hesitated. As if the final straw, there was a bang from inside the apartment window behind them, and loud shouting. Lilian and Leo both winced. "Things have been getting worse… I mean, if you really think…" Her green eyes flashed, and she looked up at Leo with her jaw set. "Okay, I'm in."_

Jason and Piper grinned. "Lilieo, yes!" Jason crowed.

"I date a madman."

 _Leo grinned. "Yes! Things will be great with just the two of us!" Lilian nodded, clearly totally catching on to the idea._

" _I have to pack my stuff, then we can go. I'll get my boxing gloves, too, if that's okay?" She looked at Leo questioningly. Leo nodded._

" _You might need them, yeah."_

"Lilian boxes? That must be how she took down Matt so easily in the other one." Annabeth said, putting the pieces together.

 _Lilian scrambled through the window, and Leo waited on the fire escape. Only a few minutes later, Lilian came back out. She wore a parka-it was a darker green then the one she had worn in the earlier memory. She also had on a black backpack with bumper stickers on it, and was mostly full of stuff. Her red boxing gloves hung from the bag, and as Leo watched she shoved a pocket knife in her front pocket._

" _Ready to go, bonita?" Leo asked, looking excited. Lilian, grinning, nodded._

" _Let's blow this popsicle stand." They climbed down the fire escape with one last glance at the apartment window and the shouting argument. When they reached the mouth of the alley, Leo glanced down the sidewalk. "Something wrong?"_

" _I've made a few enemies… just people I don't want to run into. It's cool."_

 _Lilian looked worried. "Are we sure this is a good idea, me going with you?"  
_ " _Don't worry, bonita. You and me together, right?" Leo held out his hand. Lilian's face went a little pink, and she took it. They ran out of the alley and down the street._

"Whatever Leo's been doing for three years, Lilian's in it too now." Annabeth said, but she was the only one who was uneasy.

"Yes! Total Lilieo!" Piper cheered. Percy grinned, Nyssa folded her arms with a satisfied smirk, Harley bounced with excitement, and Hazel and Frank murmured to each other.

Annabeth reflected, for what felt like the millionth time, that Leo never should've died. She had a mental list of all the people that missed him, and she silently added _Lilian Moss_ to that list. Annabeth herself had never been close the impish latino, but she missed him just as much as anyone.

 _A message appeared on the screen;_ _But this means that Leo had been travelling for three years, stopping in with Lilian every now and then. I feel you should also know where he was during that time._ _Another clip of Leo's life started…._

 **AN: Okay, don't hate me! I'M A TOTAL CALEO SHIPPER, DON'T WORRY. Eventually Leo will get together with Calypso, so no flames, people! Thanks for reading, and please leave a review or favorite/follow.**


	4. The Serpents, Jamie, and Emma

**AN: I don't own PJO or HoO. Please leave a review or follow/favorite this story if you like it.**

 _On the screen, Leo sat on top of a garbage can in a dark alley. He wore the army jacket and dirty torn clothes. On the bottom of the screen appeared the words,_ _ **Dallas, Texas**_ _,_ _ **Serpent Territory**_ _, and_ _ **Leo's age: nine**_ _._

"This must be right after he left Lilian." Annabeth said, noting Leo's age. He was only nine years old and he was living in an alley.

" _Hey, kid," A voice came from the mouth of the alley. Leo's head jerked up, his face panicked. There were four teenagers in the entrance to the alley, all at least seven years older then Leo was. They didn't look friendly._

 _The one that had spoken swaggered forward, one hand loosely holding a crowbar that he swung at his side._

"He better not hurt Leo," Nyssa muttered, glaring at the screen. Piper's hand rested on her knife, and Jason was getting seriously close to accidentally electrocuting his friends.

" _This is our territory, kid," The guy growled. He had shaggy brown hair and sharp features. "So either pay the toll or get lost." A name appeared over the guys head;_ _ **Slade**_ _._

" _Dude, how much is the toll? 'Cause I left my wallet in my limo around the corner." Leo said with a joking smile, but he slid off his perch, eyes flicking to the end of the alley and back to the guy. "I can have my butler get it, but he's scared of rats. I don't think he could get near you."_

"He shouldn't have said that." Percy said nervously.

 _Instead of attacking, Slade threw his head back and laughed. It was a cruel ugly laugh, but Leo was still alive. Leo cracked a grin. "Don't got any money on me, but I got a monkey wrench and a couple of screwdrivers. That enough?"  
_ " _I like you, kid," Slade laughed, slapping Leo on the shoulder so hard he almost fell over. He half-led half-dragged Leo towards his friends, still smirking. "You're either real brave or real dumb. Which is it?"  
_ " _I like to think I'm a little of both." Leo replied with another smile._

" _You live in that hole?" Slade asked, glancing back at the alley with disgust as he and his friends formed a circle around Leo._

" _Hey, the politically correct term is alley."_

 _Slade grinned. "You want to come with us? The Serpents don't usually take strays, but the boss might make an exception for you. Said you had tools, right? Good with your hands?"  
_ " _I've been told I'm pretty good." Leo said, puffing his chest out proudly. "But I'm not so sure about joining anything. I only work alone. And only in black."_

" _I insist!" Slade said, setting a hand on Leo's shoulder. It was necessarily friendly. "Need another set of hands anyway. The boss will love you."_

" _Not so sure about bringing Jamie a kid, Slade," One of Slade's friends said nervously._

" _She'll love 'im." Slade said confidently, and Leo was herded along the sidewalk by the gang members. That must be what the Serpents were._

 _Leo was led down the sidewalk and along the streets. They finally stopped at an abandoned brick building-there were boards over the windows, and graffiti on all the walls. Trash spilled across the sidewalk, and loud shouts and laughs and bangs could be heard from inside._

"I don't like the looks of this place." Hazel said doubtfully.

"Me neither," Frank agreed.

 _Leo was pulled inside, and the door closed behind him. The inside of the building was full of people, between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five. Most of them were armed, and several of them had definitely been drinking. There was rock music blasting from somewhere, and as Leo was led inside everyone turned to stare at him and whisper._

" _Where's Jamie?" Slade demanded of the woman behind the counter of the bar. She was tall and curvy, and long blond waves of hair were piled on her head in a messy bun. She wore a white shirt and black skirt, and a denim jacket. A name appeared over her head;_ _ **Emma**_ _._

" _Downstairs. Want a breath mint?" Emma asked, wrinkling her nose and offering Slade a tin of breath mints._

Everyone laughed. "That must be why Leo does that!" Percy grinned. "He got it from Emma."

 _Slade glared at her until she sheepishly put them away. As Slade led Leo away, Emma shouted to the other gang members, "Get back to it!" Leo was led down the stairs to a large room full of crates. Smoke clouded the air, and guns were stacked against one wall._

" _Jamie? I got a new recruit here. Found him in the alley on sixth an' first." Slade called._

 _All of a sudden a woman came around a stack of boxes. The demigods could tell right away that she was dangerous. Her eyes were dark and wild, like a cornered animal. She had a round pretty face and dark makeup, but there was something frightening about her. She held herself like a leader, chin raised defiantly and shoulders tensed. She had a stud in her nose and left eyebrow, and several in both ears. A tattoo peeked out of the right sleeve of her black leather biker jacket. She wore black leggings and a blood-red short skirt, and black combat boots. She had a gun in her belt, and the top of a knife stuck out of her boot, but she was only around eighteen. The name over her head was_ _ **Jamie**_ _._

"That's Jamie?" Percy marvelled. "I thought she'd be taller."

" _A kid?" Jamie said disdainfully after a quick glance at Leo._

" _He talks fast, and he's good with his hands." Slade said._

" _What's your name, kid?" Jamie asked, dark eyes fixing on Leo's. He looked nervous._

" _Leo McShizzle Valdez, ma'am." He squeaked. Jamie cracked a grin, but it wasn't friendly. "Talk fast, walk fast, eat fast."_

" _Alright, you can stick around, kid." Jamie said. "But only if you pull your own weight. You slip up, slack off, turn us into th' cops, you're out and it won't be a happy goodbye. For you." Jamie said, getting down to Leo's level. Her face was totally blank, not even bothered by threatening a nine-year-old._

" _Yes ma'am."_

" _And if you want to stay, you won't call me ma'am. It's Jamie, or boss. Got that?"_

" _Yes Jamie."_

" _Better." Jamie snorted. "Go help Emma at th' bar. She'll show you what's what, and get you some chores assigned around here. Most members don't have to help out, but if you want room an' board, you'll have to." Leo nodded eagerly._

 _Jamie nodded to Slade, and he led Leo up the stairs again to the party. "Hey, everyone!" Slade yelled, and everyone turned. "This is Leo Valdez, our new member!" Everyone cheered. Leo grinned._

 _Emma smiled kindly at Leo. "C'mon, Valdez. Let's get to work, huh? And don't take Jamie's threats too seriously. She doesn't like hurting kids." Leo nodded. "Hey, want a breath mint?" Leo broke into a grin._

 _The memory ended._

"Leo joined a gang? When he was _nine?_ Seriously?" Annabeth said, shocked.

"I didn't really see him as the "gang" type." Jason said, equally shocked. "But all he had to do was joke around, and they let him in without argument. That's nuts."

 _The next memory started. Leo looked almost exactly the same in this memory, but he sat on the bar, fixing a microwave. Emma was wiping off the counter and watching him work. Nobody else was there, except for a few young men talking and a woman talking to Slade._

" _That's crazy how good you are with these things, Valdez." Emma said, setting down the rag and leaning against the counter. "Where did you learn to do that?"  
Leo shrugged without looking up from the circuits he was re-wiring. "My mom taught me some, but mostly I just… know how it's supposed to go. Mama said it's a gift."_

" _It really is." Emma said. "I have no idea how mechanical things work, personally. I only understand people." She smirked. "I guess you could call that a gift, too."_

" _How long have you been with the Serpents?" Leo asked, glancing up from the microwave for a moment._

" _For about six months. I usually don't stay places this long, I'm kind of a nomad. Go wherever the wind takes me."_

" _Yeah, me too." Leo said, puffing his chest out. Emma laughed lightly. "Or, I would be."_

" _What do you mean by that?" Emma asked raising an eyebrow. She found some dirty glasses and started wiping them with her rag, still leaning against the counter by Leo._

" _Well… there's this girl…"_

 _Emma grinned. "Oh, same old story! What's her name? I'll give you five bucks if it's Juliet."_

" _Would my nickname then become Romeo?"_

" _You have to ask?"_

 _Both of them were grinning, but Leo twisted a piece of copper wiring in his hands. "I really like her, but she's like my best friend… I don't want to go anywhere without her, because I promised I'd visit, so I don't want to leave Texas so I can still see her. But she doesn't… I mean, I don't think she feels the same."_

" _I think all you can do is be the best you can and if it turns out she really does like you then you'd just have to tell her." Emma advised._

 _Leo looked surprised at the advice. "I kinda thought you'd tell me I was just bein' silly."_

" _I've never called you silly!"_

" _You did this mornin', and yesterday afternoon, and the day before that during dinner, and-"_

" _Okay, okay." Emma shook her head in defeat. "You're evil, kid."_

" _You bet I am!" Leo cackled, making Emma laugh. Leo set the back onto the microwave, and the machine immediately beeped and switched on, the panel on the front glowing slightly. "Good as new. What do you even use this thing for?"  
_ " _We have to heat the circus peanuts somehow, kid!"_

 _They both laughed, but they stopped when Jamie threw the front door open. Everyone turned to look at her. "New shipment." She snapped. "Need a few hands out here to help."_

 _Leo was about to slide off the counter, when Emma caught his arm and shook her head subtly. When everyone else was busy carrying more crates to the basement, Emma whispered Leo an explanation. "You don't want to get too mixed up in Jamie's business. Arms dealing, everyone in town comes to the Serpents for guns." She shook her head. "Not good for a kid."_

" _I'm a member of the Serpents!" Leo protested. Emma offered a half-smirk._

" _You're still nine, Valdez. Got a long life ahead of you. Don't waste it here. In the slums of the city, fixing microwaves and selling guns. I think you were meant for more."_

 _Leo frowned at her. "You been drinking something from the bottle with the skull on it again?"_

 _Emma laughed and slapped his shoulder in a friendly way. "I'm not kidding, Leo. Bigger things. One day. I can feel it. Now help me put this microwave back, would you?"_

 _The memory ended._

"Leo was with Emma and Slade and the other Serpents for three years?" Frank asked, frowning. "When Leo was leaving with Lilian, didn't he say he had made enemies? Who was that? When does that happen?"

"Maybe something goes wrong with the Serpents?" Annabeth guessed.

"Maybe they turn on him, or they fight another gang that goes after Leo?" Percy asked, glancing at Annabeth for confirmation.

"Or maybe it's something to do with someone we haven't met yet." Jason added.

 _The next memory started. Leo looked slightly older, if only by a month or so. He was arguing with Emma quietly while crowds of people partied in Emma's bar. "It's just one job, nothing will go wrong!" Leo said. The words on the bottom of the screen were;_ _ **Dallas, Texas**_ _,_ _ **Serpents Bar**_ _,_ _ **Leo's age: nine**_ _._

" _You can't do this, Leo. I'll talk to Jamie, change her mind, you don't have to-"  
_ " _It wasn't Jamie's idea," Leo interrupted. "I asked to go."_

" _Leo! This is crazy, you're nine. You'll become a criminal and there won't be any going back."_

"Wait, Leo asked to help the gang sell guns?" Percy said, looking startled. "Why would he do that?"

" _Why would you even want to do this, Valdez?" Emma demanded onscreen._

Percy went a little pink, while Harley snickered.

" _People are getting rubbed the wrong way by me," Leo argued. "They don't think I'm paying my way. If I went on a job, it would get them off my back. There's nothing else broken around here that I can fix, anyways. They're right, and I won't get kicked out by Jamie."_

" _What about that friend of yours? The girl, Lilian, right?" Emma demanded. "What would she think about you becoming a criminal?"_

 _Leo hesitated. "She would tell me that I can do what I want if I remember what I am. And what I am is a survivor-if I don't do this I'll be kicked to the curb and my chances are better with you guys. You can't stop me, Em."_

 _Emma looked shocked. "You're right. I can't." A drunk twenty-year-old man was trying to hit on Emma, but she swatted him away without looking away from Leo. "But I'm warning you, Leo-it won't help. It won't make things better for you. It won't bring your mom back to go on a job with the gang."_

 _Emma immediately winced, and Leo's eyes grew watery. "You're right. I never said it would."_

" _Leo, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"_

" _I'm going." Leo snapped, rushing out of the bar and down the stairs to the darker basement. Emma sighed, staring after him, and leaning against the counter._

" _Wanna have some fun, baby?" The drunk man giggled, putting his arm around Emma._

" _F*** off, loser." Emma grumbled._

"I have the feeling that Leo's job goes south." Nyssa said nervously.

"Leo will be okay!" Harley said immediately. Nyssa winced, and the other demigods pitied her. She had been the one to tell Harley that Leo was dead, and they weren't sure the younger demigod was totally convinced Leo was gone yet. "Leo's always okay."

"Harley…." Nyssa reminded him sadly. Harley shook his head.

"He's not dead. You'll see. Dad wouldn't let that happen."

"Sure, kid." Nyssa said, not wanting to smash his hopes. But she couldn't look at him.

 _The next scene started. Leo's army jacket was zipped all the way up, and he wore a black ski hat, which was kind of cliche. He stood in an empty lot, holding a gun. He was slightly behind and to the right of Jamie. On Jamie's other side was Slade. Another large man stood on Leo's other side, as if Leo couldn't cover Jamie on his own._

 _A few feet in front of Jamie was a large wooden crate with it's top off, black guns showing. On the other side of the crate was three large guys, also all armed._

" _Final price is two hundred. Take it or leave it, and we'll go home with the goods." Jamie said coldly to the three unfamiliar men._

" _Two hundred, then. Timmy," The man in front said, inclining his head, and the man behind him walked forward with the money in one hand. Timmy handed the money to Jamie, who glanced at it and tucked it in her pocket._

" _Pleasure doing business with you, gentlemen."_

" _Actually, on second thought… I don't think I'll be paying. Fire!" The man in front shouted, and the two other men he was with were firing towards the Serpents before anyone could shout a warning. Jamie gasped and fell forward onto the concrete, not moving. Leo and Slade both threw themselves to the sides and behind construction equipment. More shots were fired as the man that had been standing with Leo jerked back and fell on his side. His eyes were glassy._

"Ohmygods they're shooting at Leo!" Piper spluttered.

Nyssa reached forward and covered Harley's eyes with her hands so her brother didn't have to watch. For once, Harley didn't argue.

 _Leo crouched behind a steam shovel, eyes wide. He looked down at the gun in his hands. More bullets from their attackers were fired, and one clanged off the metal right where Leo had been a moment before. Slade was firing back from behind a large metal storage container._

" _No!" Leo gasped, dropping the gun like it was on fire. "I can't… Emma was right." He cursed._

 _There was a cry of pain from Leo's right, and Slade clutched his arm. Slade dropped his own gun, clutching his arm and running towards the street. "Run, kid!" He shouted. Leo's eyes widened._

"He left Leo on his own while they were getting shot at?" Hazel hissed. "He's such a coward!"

 _Leo scrambled to the side, the bullets stopping. He scrambled out from behind the steam shovel, more bullets hitting the ground around him, and he dove into an alley, screaming curses. "He went down there!" Someone shouted._

 _Leo tore the black hat off, his hair and face wild. He sprinted down the alley, and around the corner behind a row of trash cans. "Find him!" Leo was whispering in Spanish too rapidly for Annabeth to be able to translate anything. The armed men stormed past Leo's hiding place. When they were gone, Leo poked his head out._

 _Seeing that they were gone, Leo scrambled out and ran in the opposite direction from where they had come. He turned around corners and along streets, running as fast as he could until the front of Emma's bar came into view._

 _He blasted in, dodging among the legs of the bar goers until he found Emma. "Em! They're shot! The deal went south and they hit Jamie, Jameson, and Slade was hit in the arm! We have to send help!"_

 _Emma's eyes widened, and she glanced around. She grabbed Leo's arm and pulled him through the bar, tapping people on the shoulder as she went. Those people quietly followed, grouping in the basement._

" _Leo, tell them what you told me." Emma said kindly, one hand on Leo's shoulder._

 _Leo quickly recounted what had happened. The men started talking to each other, picking up guns and making plans. Emma crouched in front of Leo, big green eyes worried. "Leo, this is important. Did you see where Jamie was hit? Head, stomach, arm?" Leo shook his head. "Okay. Go get some rest, I'll close up the bar and come see you. There's nothing more you can do for Jamie and Slade right now, okay?"  
Leo nodded. Emma smiled sadly at him. "I'm sorry, Leo. You don't deserve a life like this." She quickly hugged him, and Leo stumbled away through another door to a small room. He collapsed on a sleeping bag, and the memory ended._

"Dam," Percy said, sounding half-impressed half-sick. "Nine years old and in a shoot out."

"I wish he had told us this!" Piper burst out. "So we didn't have to find it out from a stupid god and his stupid TV!"

"Pipes, calm down…" Jason said with a nervous look to the ceiling.

 _The next scene from Leo's life started…._


	5. First aid and Emma again

**AN: I don't own PJO/HoO. WARNING: this chapter is kind of bloody, but nothing too bad. Mostly just emergency first aid stuff, but I thought I should say something. Not like I know emergency first aid, I just watch a lot of cop shows.**

 _On the screen, the same Leo was sitting in the corner of the basement on his sleeping bag. He was fiddling with pipecleaners, forming them into a tiny motorcycle._

 _Suddenly the door of the basement flew open and people crowded down the stairs. Two large guys were carrying Jamie, her head lolling to one side. "Hurry, go!" Someone snapped._

" _Does she still have a pulse?"_

" _Someone call an ambulance!"_

" _No, don't!"_

 _They set Jamie down on the ground and crowded around her. Emma followed them down the stairs, carrying a white and red first aid kit. "Move, move." She said, pushing them aside to kneel by Jamie's side._

" _Hey, don't let the bartender do it! Lady, backoff!"_

" _No, she was pre-med. Let her work." Another man said, standing between Emma and the men. It was Slade. "Kid, come help."_

"Wait, Emma was pre-med? Anything she can't do?" Annabeth marvelled.

 _Leo scrambled off his sleeping bag, hurrying through the group to crouch on Jamie's other side, facing Emma. "Leo, be ready with this," Emma shoved a syringe into Leo's hand. Blood soaked Jamie's shoulder and arm. "It wouldn't have been this bad, but she's lost a lot of blood," Emma said. She held up what looked like a long pair of tweezers. "Don't look, Leo. I'm going to take the bullet out."_

Nyssa whispered to Harley, "You don't watch either." Harley didn't argue, shielding his eyes with one hand.

 _Leo shook his head, staring. Emma shrugged and grabbed the tweezers more firmly, digging them into the bullet wound in Jamie's arm._

"Oh my gods," Piper pressed a hand to her mouth.

"That's really nasty." Frank said, looking a little ill.

 _Leo winced, and Jamie groaned in pain. Emma pulled the tweezers back out, holding up the bullet. "Leo, now! Now!" Leo pressed the needle of the syringe into Jamie's arm, right by the bullet would. "Good. The bullet severed an artery, so that clotting agent is her best bet. Grab those bandages, wrap her arm while I take the bullet out of her shoulder."_

 _Leo nodded and hurried around to Emma's side to start wrapping Jamie's arm with gauze. Working together, Emma and Leo managed to clean and bandage both bullet wounds, give Jamie a sedative to help her sleep, and help carry her upstairs to her room._

 _Leo's hands trembled a little, and Emma noticed as they walked to the bar. It was full of partiers and drunkards, as always. Emma grabbed Leo's hand and pulled him behind the bar. She reached into the fridge and pulled out a root beer, popped it open, and set it on the bar. "On the house."_

 _Leo smiled and scrambled onto a bar stool. "Hungry?" Emma asked, and he nodded hopefully. She set to work making a sandwich. "Sorry you had to do that, Leo, but you were good at it."_

"She should be sorry." Jason grumbled. "He's a nine-year-old, not a trauma surgeon."

" _It's cool. I want to put it on my resume."_

" _You joke, kiddo, but I'm being honest. That's not something someone your age should do. None of this," Emma motioned around the bar with one hand. "Is good for you."_

" _You're nice to me." Leo said, taking a huge bite out of his sandwich._

" _You remind me of my how my little brother used to be. Before he…" Emma trailed off, a pained look on his face."_

" _Before he what?" Leo asked curiously._

" _It's a long story. He made some bad choices, and they came back to haunt him. He's the reason I got caught up in all of this. I came down here, and I guess I found my place." Emma smiled sadly, then her eyes fixed on Leo and she became determined. "But this isn't your place, Leo. That girl you've told me about, Lilian. Your place is with her."_

" _How can you know?" Leo asked, his face tinting pink._

" _I'm just that brilliant, kiddo. You shouldn't stay here, I've got a bad feeling-"_

" _Hey, kid!" Someone shouted from the stairs to the basement. "You, Valdez!" Leo jumped._

 _Emma stiffened. Then she reached into a drawer underneath the counter and pulled out a handgun. Leo's eyes widened. "Emma, what are you-"_

" _You blew that job, kid!" A large man in a gray hoodie shouted, shoving his way through the bar patrons and grabbing Leo's arm. A woman in a leather jacket grabbed Leo's other arm, and he tried to pull away. "Jamie could die because of you, you stupid runt!"  
_ "That wasn't Leo's fault!" Percy said angrily. "He's nine! He shouldn't have gone with them in the first place!"

 _Emma raised the gun with both hands, the barrel pointed at the large man's head. "Let Leo go, assholes." Her hands were steady, and the safety was off._

" _What the hell, Emma! You traitor!" The woman shouted. Everyone in the bar was standing back, panicking and staring, not sure what was going on. The other members of the gang were watching, hands on their own guns. "This kid screwed up!"_

" _He had nothing to do with it." Emma said calmly. She put her finger on the trigger. "I'm not playing. Let Leo go, or I shoot."_

"What's she doing?" Piper hissed. "Leo could get hurt!"  
"She knows," Jason said. "She's trying to get him out of there."

 _The two people holding Leo's arms glanced at each other, then let him go. Leo scrambled off the bar stool and tried to run to Emma, but she stepped back, shaking her head. She didn't take her eyes off the gang members, the gun still pointed to his head. But before she could do anything more, two more people in the crowd drew guns and fixed them on Emma._

" _Leo. Get out. Get out and don't look back." Emma said coldly. Leo's eyes filled with tears._

" _Emma?"  
_ " _I'm sorry, kiddo. You need to go. You need to go right now. Don't come back for me, no matter what. Now go!" She snapped, and Leo spun on his heel. He ran out of the bar into pounding rain. Behind him before the door could shut, the demigods saw Emma drop her gun and hold up her hands._

 _Behind him, in the bar, there was the bang of gunfire. And a scream; Emma's scream. Leo ran into the night, sobbing._

"Oh my gods." Nyssa whispered. "Did Emma just…?"

"I think so." Annabeth murmured.

"Those f***ing bastards!" Jason hissed. Hazel actually punched him in the arm.

"Jason! Harley's eight!"

"Hey, I know that word." Harley protested.

"Those evil-" Percy calmed himself down at a warning look from Hazel. "They killed Emma! And she was so nice to Leo, and convinced him-dang it, they're awful! They killed her!"

Annabeth nodded and grabbed Percy's hand to calm him down. "But Leo made it out okay that time. She gave her life for him, and that's a sacrifice we should respect."

 _The next memory started. Leo was walking down a dingy dimly lit hallway, in the same clothes he had been in when he left the gang. He looked tired, dirty, and bloody. He was soaking wet, had a black eye, and looked like he might collapse at any moment._

"He isn't looking good," Nyssa observed.

 _Leo stopped at a door, and knocked. He heard movement on the other side of the door, and reached up to knock again. Then the door flew open, and Lilian stood there. She was dressed in loose-fitting black pajama pants and a green tank top. Her glasses were perched on her nose, and her curly black hair was tangled and tied in two pigtails with red ribbon._

" _Leo!" She exclaimed, hugging him. Leo's cheeks went a little pink._

" _Hola, bonita." He said, slightly muffled from the hug. Lilian pulled away, smiling at him. But her smile quickly faded._

" _Leo, what happened to you? You look totally screwed up."_

 _Leo grinned. "Thanks, that's the look I was going for."_

 _Lilian rolled her eyes and grabbed Leo's hand. "How long has it been since you've eaten? And what happened to your face? I'll clock whoever did it." Lilian said, brushing his black eye with her fingers gently. "Why can't you stay? Why can you never stay? You leave and when you come back you're like this!"_

" _I'm sorry, Lil. I have to leave again, soon. I just need a place to crash for the night." Leo said, his voice vacant and his face kind of sad. Lilian scowled at him, but didn't argue._

"It really took him three years to figure out how much he needed her?" Piper groaned. "Seriously, what's with these two?"

 _Lilian pulled Leo into the kitchen, past the living room where a man and a woman were shouting at each other. A tall woman with short curly black hair and a man with Lilian's bright green eyes._

"Lilian's parents?" Annabeth guessed.

 _Leo glanced at them as they passed. "Will they be okay with me staying the night?"_

" _I don't think they remember my middle name. It'll be fine." Lilian said, like it didn't matter._

Hazel shook her head. "Poor girl."

 _Lilian led Leo into the kitchen, and sorted through the cabinet for a first aid kit. She handed Leo an ice pack, which he pressed onto his swollen and bruised eye. "What do you even do? I've seen injuries like that in the boxing gym, but you don't-"_

" _It's a long story, bonita." Leo interrupted. "Don't worry about it."_

 _Lilian stared at him for a moment, but finally just shook her head. "Sure, stupid."_

That memory finished as well. "But that was only four months, tops. That leaves two and a half years where we still don't know what Leo was doing." Nyssa pointed out.

"Hephaestus isn't done yet," Annabeth said, motioning to the screen as it flickered to life once more.

 **AN: Please leave a review or favorite/follow.**


	6. Thomas and Jamie Webber

**AN: I don't own PJO. And thank-you everybody who's reviewed, favorited, or followed. I really appreciate it, seriously.**

 _On the screen, Leo was trudging along a highway in bright blinding sunlight. He was much taller and dressed differently, so a lot of time had passed. Whenever a car passed he held up one thumb, but nobody stopped to give him a ride._

 _The words on the screen read,_ _ **Leo's age: twelve**_ _. Instead of the detailed location that was usually written in the other corner, it just read_ _ **Somewhere in rural Texas**_ _._

"Why doesn't it have a city name or at least a county or something?" Nyssa asked.

"Maybe Hephaestus isn't sure where Leo is. Maybe _Leo_ isn't sure." Piper said, staring sadly at her friend as he trudged along on the screen.

 _Leo coughed loudly and violently, and he sounded parched. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a half-full water bottle, taking a deep drink from it. He shoved it back in his bag and kept walking. But suddenly he stopped, staring at something about a half-mile from the highway._

 _It was a two-story farmhouse, but it looked abandoned. The paint was peeling off so you couldn't tell what color it was, the front door was hanging on one hinge, the windows were grimy, and the porch sagged. The lawn hadn't been mowed recently, if ever, and the corn growing in fields around the farmhouse was yellow and dead._

 _Leo eyed the farmhouse warily, glanced at the long highway ahead of him, and shrugged. He swung his legs over the metal barrier and clambered down into the corn fields. Leo walked through the fields, shoving the cornstalks out of his way. He finally reached the farmhouse and looked up at it-from this angle, it looked intimidating and frightening._

"That place looks like somewhere that would be haunted in a movie." Percy observed.

 _Leo climbed the steps and squeezed past the crooked door into the house. He breathed a sigh of relief once he was in the sheltered darkness of the house, and dropped his bag on the floor with a thud._

 _A whimper came from the next room. Leo's head whipped to the side, and his hand flew to the pocket of his army jacket._

"The owners of the house?" Annabeth wondered.

"If someone lived in the house, wouldn't they at least have the door fixed?" Hazel said, shaking her head. "Maybe it's just someone else looking for shelter for the night, like Leo."

"Hopefully. It could be a monster." Frank reminded them.

 _Leo reached into his pocket and pulled out a switchblade._

"Where did he even get that?" Piper demanded. "He shouldn't be carrying one of those!"  
"He might need it for protection, Pipes," Jason said sadly. "He lives on the streets. Leo had it worse then any of the rest of us did, and we had a lot of crap happen to us. And we never even _knew._ " He sounded angry.

Hazel nodded, looking miserable. "I died. But at least I had my mom and Sammy… Leo's all alone most of the time, and he's only twelve years old."

 _Leo gripped the knife in one hand as he tiptoed towards the door to the kitchen silently. He carefully reached the door and leapt through, the knife raised to attack any potential enemies there-but it was empty. Leo lowered the knife._

 _The whimper came again, and a "shh!". Leo still held the knife, but he crept to the large kitchen cupboard and threw the doors open. Two kids were crouched inside. "Ahh!" One of them screamed._

 _The other one shouted, "Please don't kill us!"_

 _Leo looked panicky for a moment, but turned and tossed the knife down on the kitchen counter. He held up his hands in a placating way. "Don't worry! Unarmed! I won't hurt you!"_

 _The two other children stayed crammed in the kitchen cupboard. One was a smallish girl, only half Leo's height (and he wasn't exactly tall). She had round rosy cheeks and a innocent face, big dark brown eyes, and blond hair in pigtails. She wore pink overalls and a white-shirt, though those were grimy and torn. She was the one who had been whimpering._

 _The other child was shorter then Leo was by about six inches, and a boy. He had tangled blond hair and the same large brown eyes, but instead of overalls he wore dirty jeans and a sweat-stained blue t-shirt. They both stared at Leo in fear._

 _A name appeared over each of their heads;_ _ **Jamie Webber**_ _for the little girl and_ _ **Thomas Webber**_ _for the little boy. Thomas Webber eyed Leo for a minute, then leapt out of the cupboard. "He's not so big!" Thomas exclaimed. "You aren't scary." He told Leo, almost accusatory._

" _Hey, I'm the king of scary. Why were you in the closet?" Leo asked curiously._

" _We were… none of your business!" Thomas said, flushing._

" _We were hiding." Jamie reported, still crouched in the cupboard. Thomas reddened even more._

" _Well I won't hurt you." Leo said, sitting down on the counter. "How about you guys tell me your names? Mine's Leo." He talked calmly in a friendly way, slowly relaxing Thomas._

" _I'm Thomas. This is my little sister Jamie." Thomas said, pointing to Jamie, who was still sitting in the cupboard. "How old are you?"_

" _Twelve." Leo said smoothly. "How about you two?"_

" _I'm nine." Thomas reported. "Jamie's six."_

 _Leo's face darkened, and he looked sadly between the siblings. "Why are you guys here on your own? No parents?"_

" _We have parents!" Thomas said defensively. "The social services people said we don't, but they're coming back for us. I know it."_

" _Oh," Leo said, nodding understandingly. "I understand. Of course. I have no parents. So you two are on your own, huh? For how long, do you think?"  
_ " _Six months," Jamie said softly. It was only the second thing she had said, and Leo nodded again._

"That sucks." Percy said. Annabeth sighed.

"Seaweed brain."

"Just making an observation! It does suck."

" _You two look hungry." Leo observed. "I think I have enough for all of us in my bag."_

 _Thomas shook his head, but he clearly wanted the food. "We don't need your help."_

" _Alright, alright," Leo held up his hands in defeat. He went into the living room and found his backpack, coming back in with it and setting it on the counter. He pulled out an apple. "You sure? Picked this on the walk here. It's fresh."_

 _Thomas shook his head again, but Leo skirted around him. He bowed in front of Jamie, offering up the apple. "Your majesty," He smirked. Jamie giggled and took the apple. "And for his lordship," He pulled a granola bar out of his bag. "Not as good, admittedly, but-"_

" _That's good." Thomas interrupted. "Thanks." He stuck half the granola bar in his mouth at once. Leo grinned and found another granola bar, which he kept for himself._

"That's so sweet," Hazel said. "He doesn't have anything, but he still shared with these kids. That's so… Leo."

"It's really nice of him." Piper nodded, smiling.

" _So you guys planning on sticking around here until your parents come back?" Leo asked curiously, looking at the younger kids out of the corner of his eye._

" _Yes." Thomas said proudly._

 _Leo nodded. "I'm seeing one flaw in that plan, Tommy. There's no food here, you'll starve. How about coming with me to the city? Tyler?"_

" _You're going to Tyler?" Jamie asked. "That's where we're from."_

" _Then how about going home?" Leo said, raising a hopeful eyebrow at Thomas as he considered it._

" _I guess we could." Thomas said, finishing off his granola bar. "It might be nice to travel with someone older."_

" _Yes!" Jamie cheered, and she scrambled out of the cupboard. Leo grinned._

" _Okay,_ _niños, grab any stuff you have, and let's go." Leo said. "We're out of here."_

That memory flicked off as well.

"So while he was on the streets with almost nothing, Leo took in two younger kids as well?" Jason marvelled. "Is there anything he didn't do?"

"Doesn't look like it," Piper grinned. "I wonder what else he's done. And what happened to Thomas and Jamie." The smile slipped from her face.

"I'm sure they're okay." Percy said nervously.

"Then why did Leo never mention them?" Annabeth challenged.

"We can't jump to conclusions." Nyssa said, finishing the conversation. "We'll just have to wait and see."


End file.
